All posts tagged ‘camping’

I live in a big city, but this wasn’t always so. I grew up far enough from the nearest metropolis that it was hardly worth heading into town without packing an overnight bag. My son lives with the opposite experience; we now pack our bags to trade streetlights for the moon.

Our campouts are constrained by my work schedule, and as much as we enjoy sleeping under the stars, rain can be a party-pooper. Which means whenever we’re able to head for the hills, we hit the ground running. There’s so much fun to be had in the wild open spaces of the world, and so little time! As a result, I tend to think of camping less as a vacation activity and more like an intensive study on the subject of life, the universe and everything.

Twinkle Toes by Kay Holt

Smart camping demands a certain skill set, and while the specific applications of those skills vary according to the environment you camp in, the basics are universal: Clean water, appropriate shelter, safe food, and first aid. Because our family is atheist and proudly LGBTQ, joining the Boy Scouts isn’t an option for my son. Fortunately, I actually lived outdoors — including sleeping, bathing and toileting — during parts of my childhood, so my camping skills are formidable. I can certainly teach my son the basics.

Igniting, fueling and extinguishing fire are rites of passage. To practice these with a mentor and later to perform them solo … is a big deal for kids. It demonstrates to themselves and to others that they have achieved a measure of independence, and also that they can be trusted with a measure of public responsibility. Other camping skills likewise signal that a person is grown and thoughtful enough to behave sensibly when left to their own devices.

Done right, camping teaches pro-social behavior; self-care and environmental stewardship are my favorites, but there are many others. It’s also a budget-friendly activity, and one that naturally lends itself to fond memories of shared adventures. To say nothing of the prime photo ops.

Where and when you’ll find the best fall color isn’t always easy to predict. Georgia State Parks are helping with an online Leaf Watch beginning October 1.

I’m headed to the Len Foote Hike-Inn Lodge and Amicalola Falls State Park this year, where fall color is reputed to be extraordinary. But you can take advantage of Leaf Watch even if you’re just passing through – the site includes roadside overlooks where travelers can take a break from the road to enjoy some spectacular scenery. The parks covered by Leaf Watch span the state, from the Appalachian Trail to the southern border. Rangers will be updating the site with foliage conditions and the latest news on availability for campsites, cabins and lodge rooms.

If you can’t get there in person, you can always check out the site’s webcam of fall foliage in Black Rock Mountain State Park.

Maine and Vermont also have fall foliage trackers, and the Weather Channel has a US map with foliage updates. Wisconsin‘s is admirably geeky, with cities broken down by region with each city updated by its current percent of fall color peak and a projected time when the color will reach its apex.

I spent last weekend tucked away in the New Hampshire White Mountains eating too many s’mores and sleeping in a tent with my family. We made plans for this trip back in April along with two other families and I had been looking forward to it all summer. As the weekend approached, however, the weather started to look less than stellar. My little iPhone ap started showing clouds, and then showers, and then the dreaded thunder and lightning icon. Short of a hurricane (bullet barely dodged) we still planned on going, but with plenty of backup in case we ended up trapped in tents and campers. That backup was enough boardgames to stock a small store.

You see, all three of these families are gamer families. The dads met playing games at our local store and the moms met because of the dads and the kids are friends because of the parents. It’s all about the games. If not for the games, we wouldn’t have had this camping trip at all and we wouldn’t have these wonderful people in our lives.

Our campsite was right along a shallow, slow-moving river and there was a big tree with a rope. The kids were in heaven. First thing every morning they were up and swinging into the river, leaving only when we called them for breakfast. But once breakfast was done, without fail, they asked us to break out the games. The six of them sat there in their soggy swimsuits assembling the pieces of Lego Heroica and dealing out the cards for Eleminis, which turned out to be the big hit of the weekend.

The kids ranged in age from five to nine so their reading, logic and math skills were completely different. At first glance, you’d think this would be a recipe for gaming disaster, but just the opposite happened. They wanted to play together, so rather than argue about who was playing right or wrong, they teamed up. And they did it in the fairest way possible.

They had an older kid and younger kid on each team so no one was outmatched. If someone got confused, then they explained the rules, or even made their own house rules for handling a situation so that everyone could understand. And it wasn’t just the big kids in charge. They played the game the way the younger kids wanted a few times, letting them decide the rules and just playing along.

That one little Eleminis game was played a hundred different ways last weekend and the kids were happy with every variation. It was the same with Lego Heroica, Mille Bornes, Magic and even Alhambra which they played with the adults. These kids became fast friends, learned how to work together and settled differences all because of the games they played.

We lucked out on the weather right up until the last night when the skies opened, the wind blew and it poured. We had two big canopies covering the picnic tables where we played and kept most of our camping supplies, but the rain blew in sideways and everything got drenched. Everything, except the two games we were playing when the rain began. We grabbed cards and dice and markers and ran full out for the camper where, for the next hour or so, twelve of us crammed in and finished our games. The rest of our gear, well, it’d survive, but the games had to be saved. Soggy plates and napkins are one thing, but soggy playing cards, never!

Hello my name is Sarah, and I’m a British citizen. For years I had mixed feelings about celebrating the Fourth of July with my American boyfriend/fiance/husband. Thinking it would be disrespectful of me, to both countries, to celebrate, I would go back and forth between abstaining and reveling. I would think “It’s not my holiday;” but then neither is Thanksgiving and I embraced that. It celebrates kicking my people out of the country; but that was so long ago. Of course as an American Studies major I would try to look on it analytically, studying how “these people” and “their patriotism” were similar to the jingoistic British Empire, how their reactions to this day were anachronistic.

These days I take it and myself far less seriously. I am gently ribbed by friends about being English, I poke back with a witty retort about unloading our Yankee burdens, it’s all in good fun. Much is mentioned of tea parties. These days, we spend the Fourth by the lake with friends, eating good food and watching fireworks. It is subdued and, like most holidays, it is generally celebrated as a time to come together with those we love. At this time of year we are also aware and thankful for the freedom to celebrate as we wish. For me then, the holiday is less about what happened all those years ago between England and America, and about freedom; the opportunities I am granted to live long, and prosper.

When out in the woods I have been known to fear bears, imagine giant spiders, trample on boa constrictors (otherwise known as salamanders), and in so many other ways freak out on this natural habitat that is my home. Yet as the years go by and I rack up notches on my hiking stick, I find myself more and more besotted with the rugged pastime that is camping. I no longer pine for my shower on the second day, just the third. I no longer worry about bears, just raccoons. I also no longer bring a watch or a phone with me, time passes with the rising and setting of the sun.

But… I would be lying if I said that Glamping didn’t appeal to some baser nature. The idea was first brought to my attention on Gilmore Girls by the depiction of an elite society at Yale, don’t judge me, we all have guilty pleasures. The idea being that you are technically camping; you are out in the woods but you have a bed, you sleep in a tent but a tent more like one from the wizarding world. It’s a five star hotel in the woods with all the same services provided. If you like the idea of camping but don’t’ want to rough it then this is for you. The scenery, the fresh air, the tent, but no dirt, no bugs and no Styrofoam mattresses. For me, there’s something appealing about walking through the woods in a ball gown, something almost Elvish.

As summer revs up into full swing, many of us are taking family vacations. Lots of families chose to go camping. Tents, smores, pine trees swaying in the breeze, ghost stories around the campfire… what’s not to love?

Well, apparently a lot. A new business venture recently caught my eye and I was more than a bit incredulous. It’s called The Urban Campout and you guessed it, it is indoor camping. The Urban Campout touts the fact that it is air conditioned, has a surround sound stereo system and DVD projector, and is complete with artificial grass, trees, fake campfires, and a starry ceiling.

Now maybe it is just me, but doesn’t indoor camping defeat the purpose of camping? To me the entire point of camping is being OUTSIDE enjoying nature with your family and all that it involves. On the other hand, it is just as important to spend quality time with your family making memories, whether it is indoors or out. So what do you readers think about indoor camping? Flash in the pan or a new trend?

The approach of Memorial Day finds me waxing poetic about the joys of camping. After leaving the hills and valleys of England behind and finding myself in the foothills of Maine, a place that is home to mosquitoes, black bears and other such lovely treats, I find myself married to someone who camps… in a tent… in the woods. For many years now we have joined with friends in making an annual pilgrimage to Acadia National Park; this year we do so with our toddler and their (almost) one year old in tow. Certainly Toby will be relying mostly on his father for survival skills, but now I have something to pass on to him as well: The Pocket Guide to Camping by Linda White and Katherine L. White.

Maybe I have been misled in the past, maybe I am no judge of size, but when I got this book and realized that it would actually fit comfortably in my pocket I was already willing myself to enjoy the contents. It seems to be geared towards kids of all ages and levels of expertise, without being condescending or too far advanced. Quite honestly it’s also great for an adult who didn’t grow up with this kind of adventure. The authors ask questions that prompt you to think about what you are doing, and why, so that you might get the most out of the experience. “Feel the bark of the trees. Are they rough or smooth? Cool or warm?” This book contains enough useful information and hints to appeal to the seasoned woods-loving camper, as well as things that will make your average wired-in city dweller stop and smell the pine needles. It has short sharp paragraphs, lists and highlighted boxes to keep the attention of those whose minds might wander.

The Pocket Guide to Camping contains useful information about equipment—“Watch out when the tag says the tent sleeps three – that may not include room for even the next day’s clothes!”—and helps keep your expectations real by differentiating between long trips/hikes and day trips/hikes. The authors detail how to read maps, and how to mark your own trails. Since one of the things Toby has enjoyed on our recent hikes has been following the trail markers painted on the trees, I’d say they are very well tapped in to what kids want from a guide book. The Macguyver-like instructions throughout the book, such as how to make a shelter out of dental floss and an emergency blanket, or how to make a solar oven, will certainly appeal to the blossoming geek in the family. One of my favorite features speaks to my OCD in that it contains lined pages with headings such as, “Things to remember next time you pitch camp”, and blank pages for drawing things you have seen, so that things might be properly enjoyed through documentation. It also contains check lists so that you don’t find yourself caught unawares once you leave home. Check lists that I write, and promptly lose every year!

This book is great for the independent child, in that it uses symbols to highlight dangers, thereby putting parents at ease, but shows them how to do everything from skim rocks to making different kinds of fire. There is no condescension within. The authors also encourage the reader to explore further by taking full advantage of local libraries and information centers. As we tend to leave technology behind us when we camp, it’s nice to be pointed somewhere other than the internet for such information.

If your family’s camping inclinations aren’t adventurous enough for a car packed with supplies, then join in with hundreds across the nation on June 25 for Johnson’s Great American Backyard Campout. The Pocket Guide to Campingcontains all sorts of helpful information for backyard camping, such as making a tent out of a large blanket, and making your own sleeping bags. It even shows you how to make a camp stove from a tin can! We travel four hours to our favorite camp site, but there is definitely a backyard excursion in our plans now.

If your backyard doesn’t appeal, and state or national parks don’t quite cut your need for adventure, you might want to check out some sites further from home. Which brings me to my next must-read-guide this camping season. Should you choose to take things to the next level, I strongly advise that you peruse The Wildlife of Star Wars: A Field Guide, by Terryl Whitlach and Bob Carrau, before making your choice. It’s not suitable for travel, as is The Pocket Guide, but you’ll certainly be thankful you consulted it before picking a planet for your excursion.

This beautifully illustrated guide details the animal population of the eight most popular Rebel “vacation” spots, so that you might fully prepare. Organized by planet, it contains a brief description of each ecosystem, before delving into a more detailed account of individual species. Annotated and rendered in pen and ink, it is one of the more beautiful guides I have encountered, but don’t let its aesthetics fool you: this work is full of useful survival tips for the hardy adventurer. By putting themselves at great personal risk, Terryl Whitlach and Bob Carrau have gifted both the intrepid camper, and the Alliance, with an exceptional resource. Many thanks, of course, do go to the Intergalatic Zoological Society.

Combining the two guides will allow you to determine the weather you are likely to encounter on, say Tatooine, and the clothing that you should therefore bring with you. It will allow you to accurately track the native inhabitants, and avoid mating grounds as necessary. Certainly, now that we are made aware of the intense bond between a Bantha and its Tusken Raider, we know to avoid one for fear of being taken by the other.

Image: http://starwars.wikia.com

Perhaps the most useful information offered by Whitlach and Carrau is the clear delineation between herbivore and carnivore. As many of these animals are peculiarly native to their terrain, one might be afraid of mistaking an Anoobas on Tatooine for a friendly bloodhound, whilst a Clodhopper on Naboo might be feared as one fears the vulture on earth, when in fact it is merely a dim-witted herbivore.

The detailed illustrations will be highly useful when wandering the grasslands of Theed or Forests of Endor but it is in the cross section of the Dagobah Rainforest that the artistry of the field guide really shines. Science and art are combined in a way that is sure to have universal appeal.

Little is left out by our guides; we are even given notes on the glacier fields of Hoth, though I would not want to pitch tent there even with my dental floss and emergency blanket. There is some description of Coruscant, of which most of the wildlife consists mostly of parasites, rats and politicians, by far the deadliest species encountered in this book. In the final pages we are also given a glimpse of the lost species of Alderaan, which is a wonderful way to end the guide, by reminding us to respect the surroundings we choose, to observe correct camping etiquette so as not to destroy the natural habitats of these beautiful, though often seemingly monstrous, creatures.

The Fireball Light Up Toss comes with two jai-alai-type launchers and a ball that glows in the dark. LED lights inside the basket of the launchers charge up the ball, which glows as it flies through the sky for 1) an entertaining after-dark game and 2) some darn cool visual effects that make other campers stick their heads out of their RVs and say, “What the heck is that thing?”

Tossing the glowing ball back and forth is part of the fun, but the kids we tested it out on quickly started freestyling, experimenting with different techniques for catching and throwing that made cool patterns of light. We loved that they had something active and fun to do at night, because ghost stories only get you so far.

The Fireball is recommended for kids ages 6 and up and retails for about $15 at Target, Wal-Mart and Amazon.

I’ve never seen a contest I didn’t want to enter, even when I wasn’t that enthused about the prize. It’s a geek quirk of mine. But Georgia State Parks has just rolled out a contest to name two previously anonymous waterfalls at Cloudland Canyon State Park on Lookout Mountain, so my competitive tendencies have just cranked into overdrive.

Here’s why: First, you get to name a physical feature of the American landscape, a privilege more commonly reserved for the people who, you know, discover one. That’s cool enough in itself, but here’s the second part of the prize: A two-night stay in a Cloudland Canyon State Park cottage (or three nights on two campsites, sleeping up to 6 people), plus admission to the park, a yearlong family pass for disc golf and gift certificates to the nearby Canyon Grill restaurant.

So there it is, an opportunity to rescue these natural wonders from their unwonderful appellations (currently Waterfall #1 and Waterfall #2), plus a chance to win an awesome family getaway in the process.

I’ll warn you, the contest is a bit low-tech: Entry forms must be submitted in person or by mail, but I’ll be entering anyway. If only “GeekMom Falls” didn’t sound like a headline about my clumsiness…

Entries must be received by April 15, with winners announced by April 30.